endless campaign ads and decision day is here. good evening. >> it is a pivotal point in american history. 9 closest and most expensive president recall race of all time. let's go to chicago where handelsman is standing by. >> good evening from obama and election night head quarters in chicago. there is in way to know at this point whether this will be a another acceptance speech, victory speech bit president, consolation speech or caution to the nation that will have to wait and counting will continue. these candidates have debate pepd gived. given countless speeches. on this final day, they didn't rest. mitt and ann romney voted in

belmont, massachusetts. the end of a gruelling campaign with high hopes for a key state. >> yeah, feel great about ohio. thank you. >> he headed off to cleveland for one last effort. >> president obama, who voted two weeks ago, dropped by a volunteer office near his home in chicago. he called swing state wisconsin. >> my name is barack obama, you know, the president. >> the last day of his last campaign. >> i just want to say thank you to the american people. i also want to say to governor romney, congratulations on a spirited campaign. i know that his supporters are just as engaged and just as enthusiastic and working just as hard today. >> voter turnout seems heavy. this was colorado, one of the battle ground states. other swing states today, new hampshire and virginia. voters lined up in many polling places. wisconsin, snow on election day. this is cleveland airport at

midday. mitt romney's plane and nearby vice preside vice president biden's plane, all in ohio. romney and obama heading to a volunteer state. biden too, stopping at a restaurant, later in pennsylvania like barack obama had mitt romney complimented his rival. >> the president has run a strong campaign. i believe he is a good man and wish him well and his family well. he is a good father and has had a -- been a good example after good father. but it is time for new direction. >> just a few more hours, and they get the first return. so what states to watch. okay, in the order that their polls close tonight. virginia, ohio, florida. live from obama election night head quarters in chicago, i'm handelsman, reporting.

now back to you. >> steve, thank you. virginia, florida and ohio. very crucial states. voter turnout now in new york is heavy despite widespread devastation left by superstorm sandy. many people left their homes, still without power, to cast their ballots. tents operating on generators were put up to replace storm damaged polling locations. long lines in new york but also there was a pay off. voters got to charge their cell phones as cell phone charging stations and some received hot meals. >> back here in the bay area, voting got under way. half of california voters have already voted by mail. nbcabduro santiago joins us. >> we are at a tiny place on nop hill. only about eight voting booths and this place was packed for the first couple of hours open and then the number of voters

slowed down significantly to barely a trickle. and it's been that way at a lot of polling places earlier when we were at san francisco city hall poll workers manned the front steps to collect ballot dropped off there. there is a bit of a line downstairs at the polling station where a few dozen people waited to cast their ballot. as voters made their decisions, workers for department of election were busy counting ballots. voters who do take part in every election and also some first time voters. >> my business is important so i tried to come out and do my civic duty. you know, i come out. >> i think it is really exciting. this is my first time being able to vote in a major elocation because i'm finally old enough. so it is exciting for me. >> we would normally be at the playground. but we had a little detour. so yeah, we are going to the library after that. thought i would come by city hall and vote down here.

>> there was last minute campaigning being done this morning at city hall and civic center plaza. polg places will be open until 8:00 p.m. earlier i spoke to the san francisco department of elections and they tell me they are expecting numbers to crank back up again as soon as people get off of work. live in san francisco, aturo santiago, bay area city news. >> you should know our entire investigative unit it out today to make sure voting goes smoothly. if there is a problem, we would like it hear about it. you can call or e-mail us at nbcbayarea.com. the governor has been campaigning almost nonstop for prop 30. a tax initiative that would raise more than $7 billion annually. most of that money would go to education. now if prop 30 fails, $6 billion in education cuts will go into effect almost immediately.

it is a political hot potato with serious implications. nbc bay area cheryl herd joins us from sack ratto with the latest. cheryl? >> volunteers are here preparing the room for tonight as you can see they are putting up signs and preparing the cables. and everything is just right. as far as governor, well he did what a lot of us did this morning. he voted. the governor voted at his polling place in the oakland hills. the location is walking distance from his home after greeting the dalmatian at the fire station, he told reporters that he plans to spend the day hiking and he hopes to see wild bore and maybe a few elk. of that he plans to watch returns here in sacramento at the sheraton. he said he is optimistic about prop 30 and so are his opponents. >> i think it is hard fought campaign but i've been throughout the entire state and i have a sense that people are ready to invest in their future.

which is kids in california and balanced budget going for. >> frankly the gov can reconvene and say you know what, we will reinstitute that funding for education. so a false choice to say that it is either education funding or these cuts. >> while he went on to say that all of the money use ford example for high speed rail, could have been used for education. back here live, you can see that the stage is set and the party a few hours away and we will be here all night long. reporting live from sacramento, i'm cheryl herd, nbc bay area news. >> we will continue to check in with you, sperl. you should know there a second and competing measure on the ballot also aimed at raising money for schools. one that's gone head to head with the governor in a very contentious way.

for more on that and other propositions, janelle joins us. >> proposition 38 is backed by molly myunger. she spent more than $37 million promoting it. prop 38 would raise an estimated $10 million a year for schools. with some of the money going to pay down the state debt. 38 bypasses lawmakers and state general fund with all of the money going directly to schools. now if voters pass 30 and 38, the measure with the most votes wins. now here are some other key measures this election. proposition 31 would establish a two-year state budget. prop 32 would ban union press deducting money from paychecks for political purposes. prop 37, which would require food companies to label genetically engineered food. there are also three propositions that deal with crime, specifically the death penalty, human trafficking and three strikes law. well follow all of the props

tonight and keep you posted all night. >> thank you. yes, our election day coverage is just getting started throughout this afternoon and evening. after the break, we go live it southern california. >> part of the voting process for more than a century in bay area exclusive. we meet up with people who made the voting booth a part of their lives. >> we are also covering a developing story in central california. a deadly workplace shooting. what police are now revealing about the gunman. >> and good afternoon, pch on this historical election day, we have historic heat on the weather map. 79 in san jose and 81 in sunniville. well talk about how long this weather will last. if you are heading out to the polls, no worries about weather, it is all clear. we have information on major changes as well in the seven-day. [ male announcer ] are you ready for tomorrow's technology today?

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in fresno two more people died in a chicken processing plant bringing the number to three now. the coroner says a suspected gunman, lawrence jones, were among the dead, and he apparently took his own life. a fourth person wounded by gunfire is still hospitalized. police say they don't know what know prompted the attack but other workers say jones didn't appear to be himself when he arrived at work today. police say jones does have an extensive criminal history but they aren't giving any details at this point. >> returning now to election day coverage, the way you cast your ballot can vary greatly from election to election and from county to county. we see how different electronics is used across the bay area. >> we have 600,000 vote by mail ballot to 817,000 voters. >> santa clara, is where voters,

by and large, choose mail-in ballots. >> it is easy, convenient. they can make their decisions at home. >> last time we voted, it was very crowded here. we waited for hours and hours just to vote. this is so much more efficient. >> if you do choose to cast your ballot in person, the system in which to do so can vary greatly. voters mark their choices with a line connecting an arrow or by filling in a circle. ballot are run through an optical scan machine which checks for accuracy. most counties have voters run their ballot through the scanner at precincts. the exception is santa clara which has all ballot selected and does scanning at a central location. all counties have a touch screen available for voters who choose to use that or those who are disabled. voters use the eslate, the ballot is presented on a color screen and selections are use maze using a rotary wheel.

the votes are also stored and when the polls closed, the data is sent to election offices. following same protocol and a popular voting method. >> now state republicans are gathering in southern california where they are gearing up for what they hope will be a victory party tonight. nbc judy hernandez joins us from orange county where the mood is up big,eddy, but there is time to wait and see what happens. >> there is jessica, orange county is the state's republican strong hold. republicans make up more than 40% of registered voters here and this is where those republicans will be gathering tonight here in this ballroom. you can see they are getting the room ready. they have set up the flag and are setting up the podium. but right now, republicans are still out knocking on doors and many food banks. >> today's election day -- >> orange county republican headquarters is hopping as romney backers follow the lead of the republican nominee by

spending election day pounding the pavement for votes. >> that's why i'm here because i'm for mitt romney and i will help them until the very end. last minute of the hour that we can vote. >> while california's electoral votes have gone to democrats in recent presidential elections, golden state republicans are hoping to add to their candidate's popular vote tally. congressman dana rohrabacher says he has never seen the state's gop base so fired up. >> this is an energy level i haven't seen since ronald reagan ran againjimmy carter and frank there is more energy than that. >> hopefully this energy will help the initiative on the ballot. >> it is causing our registered voters to say, you know what, it is time for me to stand up and do something. >> we will be working here all day long, and then we have victory and it'll be a victory for us tonight.

>> again, that party will take place right here at the westin south coast plaza hotel. doors will open at 8:00 after the doors close. i'm jody hernandez, nbc bay area news. >> jody will be there throughout the night bringing you updates on what is happening there, the mood and how things are going with different propositions and election throughout the evening. more and more californians are voting by mail but some enjoy doing it in person. >> nbc bay area, sharing their service in today's bay area proud. >> it's democracy ever needed a home address in the bay area, it could do worse than the corner house on beverly boulevard. for yet another first tuesday in

novembering wi helen garza movi furniture around. she was just recognized by the secretary of state of her 52 years of election volunteering. >> i feel happy i've been able to do it this long. >> helen's volunteer history began at age 21 in a polling place set up in a neighbor's garage. the year, was 1960. >> a record number of americans upwards of 67 million -- >> it was really exciting. and that night i can remember, the people were lined up outside the drive way and down to the next house. >> helen says they counted ballots until noon the next day. >> we were tired. >> still, something inspired helen to come back again. and again. in all, she guessed she volunteered for some 75 different elections. helen has seen a lot over the

years. >> andate chavez medinah has seen more. this is her 60th year of volunteering at the poll. >> both claim it is not so much patriotism but helping others that keeps them coming back. they know with fewer and fewer people voting in person one day, the polling volunteer might be a quaint piece of history. until that time, as long as the county needs their help, these two are happy to answer the call. nbc bay area news. >> and let's hope that poll person doesn't disappear. great tradition. >> i enjoy going out there and getting my little sticker today. >> yeah, wearing mine just a little longer too. >> let's bring in jeff. a lot of issues back east but here it has been just beautiful, hasn't it? >> it has. historic temperatures on this historic election day.

if you are heading out to the polls, we know they are open later here in california, until early evening hours across the bay area. no problems when it comes down to weather. clear skies and some very warm temperatures with mid 80s inland. so still some time to get out that vote. some of the hottest weather today, again in the extreme south bay. 92 degrees, some 20 degrees above your averages as we are now in day two of this record setting heat. other spots that have also now surpassed record highs, even 3:19 this afternoon. napa also at 80. your old record, 75. it is going to be really dropping quite a bit by thursday. low 60s coming our way. let's get a look at current numbers. we are finding still in the interior valley back for east and south bay. and live sky camera network showing clear skies, no fog for tonight with the slight off-shore flow. gradually getting into changes

throughout wednesday and also thursday. let's get to you that. over the next 48 hours, what we will find here is the storm track is going to push off off to the south. all of this record-setting heat is going to get out of here and we will get abrupt very fast changes. temperatures dropping 20 to 30 degrees. sierra snow and also rain fall that could be a tie as a half inch. so as we head throughout wednesday, temperatures dropping about 10 to 15 degrees for tomorrow. by thursday, that is when we introduce that chance here of some rain fall. by morning hours on thursday, that is when a we get a few showers up in the north bay. then pushing down into south bay for evening hours on thursday and we will keep that chance of rain in friday's forecast. throughout tomorrow, plenty of low to mid 70s, not expecting too many lines for records. if you are heading anywhere east, get ready. we have this storm system coming our way for northeast. nor'easter with one or two inches of rain. possibly three to six inches of snow from staten island through new york city with hardest hit

area. now a lashing of very cold and windy weather. for us here at home, we are looking at again our cold weather and also rain fall, again arriving by thursday and also friday. we can't even rule out a few thunderstorms with that thursday and friday storm system coming our way. >> all right, afternoon forecast. >> yeah. >> 3:20. >> looking good. >> thanks, jeff. >> sure. >> a guide to watch the election results coming in tonight. we will show you and make sure you catch it on air and on line.

live look now at democracy plaza. brian williams and our network team will provide live coverage beginning about seven minutes from now through the night on all of the national races and of course we will bring here for all of local races. if you watch our election day coverage here on nbc bay area, our digital team will work on realtime in the second screen. we are talking about our website

and mobile apps. scott has more on what we can expect and how it track owl of us. >> rod, we talk about the second screen and all sorts of events, working tonight on election night. first to our website, nbcbayarea.com where we will stream our election day coverage live. we will have our poll numbers as they come in from the various election day results. we have a section devoted to 2012. live streaming speeches as they come in throughout the evening. we also have mobile apps for you from both android and apple stores. what would second screening be without keeping track of the tweets. we are doing that for you as well. a few can dates are tweeting out already as you can imagine. this from mitt romney. we can't afford four more years. vote today to insure the future is better than the past. his rival, president barack obama. confirm your polling place with one of the million instagram photos you are seeing.

>> also local celebrities. if you love start-ups, hammer wants you to vote yes on proposition e and of course what would an election day be without people saying hey, i just voted and i hope you will too with an instagram shot of the polling place. well get these things all night, all day. if you have an instagram photo, send them to us. we will be doing this all day and into the night as we continue to follow this on the second screen. back to you guy good way to watch coverage tonight. >> we'll be right back.

nationally and locally rehave live and local updates throughout the evening nor the next nine hours.

we will have plmore throughout e evening. >> bye-bye. [ female announcer ] this is a special message from at&t.

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